All of this feels somehow timed to coincide with the release of Oppenheimer.
You look at the US marketed Godzilla monsterverse that has come out over the last several years and one thing is clear... Godzilla and Kong are compassionate to humans and are a force that can be tamed/harnessed/directed. They are a force to be used. They are destined to choose to side with humans. It seems like Western plot-armor, almost.
I haven't seen it yet, but the sensation I get from the upcoming Godzilla Minus One is shock and dread, a regret for releasing the genie and a desire to close Pandora's box. All previews for it seem to market it as a tragedy in the classic sense.
Two very different emotions in these different takes on these films, aimed at different audiences. And it makes perfect sense since the Japanese focused film is catering to a population that has lived with, and processed, being nuked twice... while the American focused film is catering to a population that enjoyed the victory of harnessing that power and standing as a global superpower for 80 years.
Do you think there's a subliminal narrative to be found in the dichotomy here, along with the release of Oppenheimer in the same timeframe? It seems to me that creative forces are attempting to have a dialogue about the responsibilities and dangers of nuclear weapons, and it's especially valuable because pretty much the entire generation that witnessed nuclear attacks firsthand has passed on, and the anecdotes that are so powerful when delivered from a primary source lose their potency when the owner of that voice is no longer with us.
One might even tie Villeneuve's Dune into this as well, with a nasty sandy place holding the motive power necessary to move the world, and religious conflict rising.
